Technical Standards of Performance for Applicants

Marietta College Physician Assistant Program students are expected to perform and be competent in many functions and tasks which signify that the holder is an individual prepared for entry-level employment as a PA. In a professional role the physician assistant can provide medical services under the supervision of a Doctor of Medicine or Doctor of Osteopathy in accordance with the laws of medical practice. The services must, for the safety and welfare of the patient, be of the same professional quality that would be rendered by the supervising physician. The physician assistant must have the knowledge and skills to function in a broad variety of clinical situations and to render a wide spectrum of patient care.

Candidates for the physician assistant profession must have somatic sensation and the functional use of the senses of vision and hearing. Candidates' diagnostic skills will also be lessened without the functional use of the senses of equilibrium, smell and taste. Additionally, they must have sufficient exteroceptive sense (touch, pain, and temperature), sufficient proprioceptive sense (position, pressure, movement, stereognosis, and vibratory) and sufficient motor function to permit them to carry out the activities described in the sections that follow. They must be able to integrate all information received by whatever sense(s) employed, consistently, quickly, and accurately, and they must have the intellectual ability to learn, integrate, analyze and synthesize data.

A candidate for the physician assistant profession must have abilities and skills including observation, communication, motor, conceptual, integrative and quantitative, and behavioral and social. Technological compensation can be made for some handicaps in the above areas, but such a candidate should be able to perform in a reasonably independent manner.

I. Observation
A candidate/student must be able to observe a patient accurately at a distance and close at hand. Observation necessitates the functional use of the sense of vision and somatic sensation. It is enhanced by the functional use of the sense of smell and touch. The candidates must possess adequate sensation of vision, hearing, equilibrium, smell, taste, touch, pain, temperature, position, pressure, movement, stereognosis, and vibration in the observation of changes in symmetry. The candidate must be able to observe demonstrations, laboratory exercises, and results in the basic sciences and clinical courses.

II. Communication
A candidate/student must be able to communicate effectively and sensitively with patients, physicians, and other health care professionals. The candidate must be able to communicate effectively and efficiently in oral and written form with all members of the health care team. A candidate/student should be able to speak, to hear, and to observe patients in order to elicit information, describe changes in mood, activity and posture, and perceive nonverbal communications.

III. Motor
Candidates/students should have sufficient motor function to elicit information from patients by palpation, auscultation, percussion, and other diagnostic maneuvers. A candidate should be able to do basic laboratory tests, carry out treatment and diagnostic procedures, and read EKGs and X-rays. A candidate/student should be able to execute motor movements reasonably required to provide general care and emergency treatment of patients. Examples of emergency treatment reasonably required of physician assistants are cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the administration of intravenous medication, the application of pressure to stop bleeding, the opening of obstructed airways, the suturing of simple wounds, and the performance of simple obstetrical maneuvers. Such actions require coordination of both gross and fine muscular movements, equilibrium and functional use of the senses of touch and vision.

IV. Intellectual-Conceptual, Integrative and Quantitative Abilities
These abilities include measurement, calculation, reasoning, analysis and synthesis. Problem solving, the critical skill demanded of physician assistants, requires all of these intellectual abilities. In addition the candidate should be able to comprehend three-dimensional relationships and to understand the spatial relationships of structures.

V. Behavioral and Social Attributes
A candidate/student must possess the emotional health and stability required for full utilization of his/her intellectual abilities, the exercise of good judgment, the prompt completion of all responsibilities attendant to the diagnosis and care of patients, and the development of mature, sensitive and effective relationships with patients. Candidates must be able to tolerate physically taxing workloads and to function effectively under stress. They must be able to adapt to changing environments, to display flexibility and to learn to function in the face of uncertainties inherent in the clinical problems of many patients. Compassion, integrity, concern for others, interpersonal skills, and interest and motivation are all personal qualities that are assessed during the admissions and education processes.

VI. Professional Standards
A candidate/student must consistently display honesty, integrity, respect for self and others, tolerance, caring, fairness, and dedication to their patients, peers, PA faculty and staff, Marietta College faculty and staff, the community and the PA profession.

Founded in 1835, Marietta College is a private, liberal arts college located in southeast Ohio. Consistently ranked among the top Midwestern schools by U.S. News and World Report, Princeton Review and others, Marietta College's small and diverse student body enjoy opportunities rarely found at other liberal arts schools.